A new strategic framework has been developed through a collaboration with the Dutch Green Building Society (DGBC), Metabolic, SGS Search and Circle Economy that defines circular buildings. It describes indicators that could be included in the sustainable certificate BREEAM-NL to better evaluate circular buildings. The frameworks are detailed in the report ‘A Framework for Circular Buildings: Indicators for possible inclusion in BREEAM’.
“Scaling is what we need right now to make the built environment circular. This report presents an overview of practical strategies to construct and design circular buildings around the world. Incorporating just one of these strategies in a leading sustainable building standard like BREEAM represents a massive opportunity to future-proof our built environment."
Ben Kubbinga, Lead Built Environment Program Circle Economy
Presentation during Expo RealThe first copy of the new report was presented to Shamir Ghumra, director of BREEAM on 9 October 2018 during the real-estate trade fair Expo Real in Munich. The report includes a framework for defining circular buildings and concepts for developing measurable indicators. The essential indicators that define a building’s circularity were developed by an expert group with six indicators developed in more detail. The indicators will be field-tested in follow-on studies.
Steven Traast (SGS Search), Edwin van Noort (DGBC), Clemens Brenninkmeijer (Redevco), Annemarie van Doorn (DGBC) presenting the report to Shamir Ghumra (BREEAM) during Expo RealCooperationThe author organisations, supported by the Redevco Foundation, investigated how circularity can be incorporated in the urban environment using BREEAM-NL, which is a sustainability certificate for buildings that has been widely adopted by the market since its introduction in The Netherlands in 2010. Over nine million square meters of real-estate have been certified to BREEAM-NL standards. The certificate has a holistic approach to sustainability and includes many concepts which can be used for circular buildings.Exceptional developmentShamir Ghumra, director of BREEAM: “Material resource efficiency and circularity lie at the heart of much of the research carried out by BRE over the years, work that continues today with leading roles in projects such as the BAMB (Building as Material Banks) project. It is great to see the DGBC, as our BREEAM National Scheme Operator in the Netherlands, proactively researching issues such as this and thereby contributing to the ongoing evolution of BREEAM with this report.”Edwin van Noort, development manager at DGBC, calls the framework an exceptional advancement: “Over the years, many definitions have been proposed for sustainable buildings, but practical definitions hardly ever materialised. That has now changed.”Clemens Brenninkmeijer, board member at Redevco Foundation says, “Redevco Foundation supports initiatives that aim to increase the understanding of and accelerate the transition to a more sustainable, low carbon-emission and circular built environment. We are very happy with the outcome of this research project and the proposed incorporation of these measures within the existing BREEAM-NL framework – and hopefully the BREEAM International framework too. It will encourage even more parties to think about tangible measures to make our real-estate sector more resource-efficient, less wasteful and more competitive.”[cta link="https://www.circle-economy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/A-Framework-For-Circular-Buildings-BREEAM-report-20181007-1.pdf"]Download the full report[/cta]
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In 2015, the City of Amsterdam embarked on their journey to become fully circular by 2050. Three years and over 70 circular projects later, the City shares its experiences with the world inviting other cities to share, learn and join Amsterdam on their circular journey. Fully Circular by 2050 - Learnings shared by a global frontrunnerOn September 25 2018, the City of Amsterdam and Circle Economy have launched the Circular Journey of Amsterdam, an interactive storyline that brings together interviews from key stakeholders throughout the city; from the deputy mayor, and local SMEs, to corporates and research institutions. Throughout their journey, Amsterdam has embraced a learning by doing approach. Based on this open and collaborative ethos, insights, projects and partnerships have resulted in experiences and learnings of the past years. This launch marks the first in a three-part series in which Amsterdam and Circle Economy share the key building block to becoming a fully circular city. Recognising the potential of the circular economy to help create a livable, resilient and competitive city of the future, the City of Amsterdam has committed to becoming fully circular by 2050. But ambition and action are two very different things. Thus, the city became the first in the world to develop a vision accompanied by a roadmap and action agenda to realise their ambitions. Now, three years later, Amsterdam has implemented over 70 circular projects throughout the city. These projects are evaluated across 7 policy instruments and 5 sectors.
“The City of Amsterdam is engaging with the circular economy because it is the only way to have an economy in our future. The circular future of Amsterdam is a city without waste. It’s a city with a very small footprint. And it’s a city where we understand that we need fewer resources and more welfare for everyone.- Marieke van Doorninck Deputy Mayor Sustainability of Amsterdam
A fact-based approach towards a circular city in 4 stepsAs a pioneering city, the experiences and insights that Amsterdam has gained throughout their journey to become fully circular can serve as both inspiration and guidance to other cities looking to kick-start their transition towards a circular economy.
“Over the past three years, the City of Amsterdam has firmly established itself as a global frontrunner. Sharing the experiences of the City’s circular journey can play a vital role in catalysing the transition towards a human-centred and resilient circular future.” - Annerieke Douma, Director Programmes at Circle Economy
The Circular Journey of Amsterdam showcases four key steps that have helped kickstart Amsterdam's transition:
[cta link="https://circle-economy.com/amsterdam-circular-journey"]Circular Journey of Amsterdam[/cta]
For questions and press inquiries please contact: melanie@circle-economy.com
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The launch of the Circular Journey of Amsterdam marks the first release of a three-part series that aims to break down three of the key questions that cities face when transitioning towards a circular economy. Each entry in the ‘Circular Journey of Amsterdam’ series will launch partner Circle Economy’s latest report and insights from the City of Amsterdam and will tackle three key questions;
Interested in Amsterdam's full circular journey?
[cta link="https://circle-economy.com/amsterdam-circular-journey"]Explore[/cta]
[hr]About Circle Economy’s Cities ProgrammeAt Circle Economy’s Circle Cities Programme, we believe in prosperity for all within our planetary boundaries. Our mission is to future-proof cities by creating a livable environment with economic, ecological and social prosperity for its citizens through practical and scalable implementation of the circular economy. We do this by connecting and empowering a global community of cities with insights, measurement tools and services to catalyse the systemic transformation of our linear economy into a circular economy.For more information please contact annerieke@circle-economy.com
AMSTERDAM, 26 July 2018 – Experts bundle their knowledge to tackle challenges in the construction sector to finance circular construction. The Community of Practice 'Financing Circular Construction’ will provide a practical roadmap to design and create a viable and financeable circular residential housing project in Amsterdam.A circular building is designed in a way that it can be entirely disassembled and individual components can be readily repaired, reused or repurposed. In the construction and use phase, resources are optimally used and the use of raw or toxic materials is minimised.
Community of Practice (CoP)The working group format Community of Practice (CoP) is an initiative of NederlandCirculair! and emphasises the importance of a collaborative approach, connecting relevant industry stakeholders. The Circular Construction CoP follows the 2017 Circular Phone CoP, where accountants, legal and financial experts created several practical, open-source tools that support entrepreneurs in their ambition to realise service-based business models.
After the successful Circular Phone CoP last year, we are happy to have, once again, gathered such an impressive group of experts that will help overcome legal, financial and valuation barriers for the construction industry. We are very optimistic that we will be able to create practical tools that accelerate a circular built environment.- Fieke de Haan, Lead Finance Program Circle Economy
Focus on construction sector; participation Eigen HaardCircle Economy's Circularity Gap Report states that the built environment is the largest consumer of raw materials, using 42.4 billion tonnes annually. This is 40% of our total annual resource use. Social Housing corporation Eigen Haard is aware of the impact of the built environment on the environment. Circularity in constructing and maintenance is one of its long-term goals.
At Eigen Haard we have recently defined our circular ambitions. This CoP offers an ideal opportunity to source and apply expert knowledge to one of our residential housing projects and accelerate our circular ambitions.- Jeffrey Hirs, Projectcontroller Eigen Haard
A new model for the construction sectorThe CoP aims to develop new, circular business models that accelerate the transition to a circular construction sector. To do so, the sector has to evaluate aspects like design, material choice, and possibilities of maintenance and reuse. Circular strategies force the industry stakeholders to redesign the way they work together, change cash flows and risk evaluation mechanisms. Questions that will be tackled during the CoP focus on harvesting, circular design, new perspectives on ownership, legal constructions and the valuation and financing of buildings. The outcomes and practical tools following the project will be published in an open source whitepaper.The 'Financing Circular Construction’ CoP takes place from June until October 2018, is co-funded by NederlandCirculair! and brings together ING, Allen & Overy, Eigen Haard, The Royal Netherlands Institute of Chartered Accountants, Alfa Accountants and Advisors, RICS, Madaster, Arcadis, Arup, Sustainable Finance Lab, DOOR Architecten and Circle Economy.
For more information about the CoP Financing Circular Construction, contact us:
Aglaia Fischer: aglaia@circle-economy.com
Webinar centres around urgency for businesses and investors to take 'Linear Risks' seriousWelcoming an international audience Circle Economy was happy to co-host the 'Linear Risks' webinar together with PGGM, KPMG, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development after launching the 'Linear Risks' Essay in June 2018. Over 120 participants from various corporations, SMEs, governmental organisations, NGOs, and advisory firms attended the webinar to learn more about ‘Linear Risks’ from the perspectives of Circle Economy as a circular economy expert, WBCSD as a global business network, PGGM and EBRD as financial institutions, and KPMG as an advisory firm.Key discussions from the webinar centered around the urgency for businesses and investors to take ‘Linear Risks’ into account in their decision making, particularly as companies and government agencies are increasingly coming to realise the impacts of ‘Linear Risks’. Questions from the audience highlighted the need to start developing more concrete metrics, models, and disclosure guidelines for ‘Linear Risks’, as well as start to adapt and improve existing risk management models and ESG frameworks to incorporate ‘Linear Risks’.As the 'Linear Risks' essay demonstrates, linear economic business practices are creating real business threats, including risks associated with the use of scarce and non-renewable resources; prioritisation and sales of products produced with virgin resources; the failure to collaborate; and failing to innovate or adapt. These are all factors that will negatively impact the ability of organisations to continue business as usual and prevent us from closing the circularity gap.With the ‘Linear Risks’ webinar, we started taking the first steps to raise awareness and engage in a constructive dialogue with the financial and business community to better understand and model ‘Linear Risks’. We were very happy to see so much interest, engagement, and feedback from the community, and we look forward to continuing our efforts to ensure that ‘Linear Risks’ become an integral part of financial and business decision-making.
[cta link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWuXl1Y36M4"]Watch the Webinar[/cta]
As part of Circle Economy's ambition to place circularity on an international stage and bring the topic to a wider audience, we are proud to announce our official partnership with Helsinki Fashion Week. Helsinki Fashion Week is the world’s first Fashion Week aiming to be 100% sustainable and is taking a ground-breaking stance by putting the circular economy front and center. Circle Economy is thrilled to become an official knowledge and content partner to this progressive platform. Circle Economy will support Helsinki Fashion Week in presenting the topic of circularity to a wider fashion audience. This year’s event, that takes place from the 20-25th July, rests on the twin pillars of the circular economy and sustainability. 30 brands, who are all integrating environmental and social sustainability at their core with garments crafted from recycled materials or natural and reusable fabrics, will be brought together in a celebration of all things circular. Pick of the bunch is The New Normal project, a closed loop fashion collection produced in collaboration with WFF and the Infinited Fibre Company. Since an estimated 80% of a product’s environmental and economic impact is determined at the design stage, empowering designers to make the right decisions, and rewarding those who are already are, will undoubtedly accelerate the industry's transition to a sustainable and circular economy.
We are thrilled to be able to support Helsinki Fashion Week in becoming circular and applaud the bold stance they've taken. It's time that the concept of the circular economy reached the wider fashion community and partnerships like ours are critically needed in order to bring this urgent topic from books to the runway. Circular fashion needs to be the new normal. - Jade Wilting, Head of Partnerships Textiles Programme, Circle Economy
This year’s runway spectacle will be supported by The EcoVillage infrastructure, utilizing green technologies and renewable energy sources to provide for a ‘zero waste’ event. By showcasing the latest developments and innovation in technology, electronic transportation, mobility and robotics, the village will offer unique experiences by questioning the nature of being, existence, and reality in the evolving world and the fashion industry. Circle Economy is thrilled to see these innovations implemented in practice.
"It is most vital to work and collaborate across industries. It's the ultimate key to realise a circular economy in all sectors and aspects of human life. Circle Economy is a great partner whose knowledge and expertise spans many different sectors and industries and has the ability. Together, I believe we have the power to inspire people to see the benefits and adopt a circular lifestyle."- Evelyn Mora, Founder Helsinki Fashion Week
Helsinki Fashion Week are clearly focused on and dedicated to creating a more circular and sustainable fashion industry through cross-industry partnerships. If you want to hear more about their commitment to the cause, their Advantage podcast series offers insightful discussions on the challenges and rewards of implementing circularity within the industry and everyday life.
Learn more about our work within textiles here: [cta link="https://www.circle-economy.com/textiles/"]Circle Textiles[/cta]
About Helsinki Fashion WeekHelsinki Fashion Week 2018 showcases sustainable fashion designers to international buyers, press, and other professionals in the fashion industry. The event offers new experiences and information to visitors through the EcoVillage platform which is built based on circular and sharing economies. The event aims to inspire sustainable urban development and cross-industry solutions to current and future environmental challenges in the fashion business.About Nordic Fashion Week AssociationNordic Fashion Week Ry (NFW) is an internationally recognised, not-for-profit nongovernmental fashion organisation, working to advance the Nordic and international export of sustainable fashion and business. NFW collaborates and consults several organisations, enterprises, research institutes and other industry events on the themes of circular economy and sustainability. NFW's yearly main project Helsinki Fashion Week (HFW), is held during July 20–25th. The event supports Finnish and international designers by offering them a sustainable and free-of-charge platform, to showcase their creations for the international fashion buyers and press.
As the recognition of the circular economy continues to grow internationally, so too does Circle Economy's reach; this time into the Czech Republic. Here, Circle Economy will lead city changemakers within Prague through a multi-phase process, from orientation to implementation aimed at creating a practical roadmap for the transition towards a circular city. The innovative methodology has been applied to cities and regions throughout Europe, including Amsterdam, Glasgow and Bilbao-Bizkaia. This new additionally follows the announcement of Circle Economy expanding to China.In late June 2018, Circle Economy and INCIEN officially kicked off Prague’s Circle City Scan with a collaborative workshop marking the beginning of the city’s journey towards a circular economy. The project focuses on the creation of an inclusive circular vision for the Czech capital and supports the co-development of tangible circular strategies, weaving circularity into the fabric of the city. Launching the project in the same spirit in which it will continue, the kick-off brought together stakeholders from a broad array of sectors, including local government, waste management, innovation and urban development. Hosted at the United Nations Information Centre, the collaborative workshop aimed to collectively determine how the circular economy can synergise with the character of the city. Similarly, the project will be conducted in partnership with INCIEN; a Czech, non-profit organization that focuses on innovative environmental management and on projects that share a common goal; to transition from a linear to a circular system.
"We are really excited about the collaboration with Circle Economy. With this partnership, we can combine unique circular knowhow, and experience, within a local context and network in order to develop scalable solutions with a positive impact on the local economy and the environment. We hope Prague is just the beginning and other cities in Czech and Slovakia will soon follow. " - Vojtěch Vosecký, Co-founder, Operations Manager, INCIEN
Importantly, no two cities are identical. Therefore, the workshop provided an important first step to rooting local knowledge and ambitions for the city within the core of the project. This approach allows the identification of key areas in the city with the greatest transformative potential.
“Prague’s rich history and dynamic recent growth present a compelling opportunity to embed circularity into the city’s future development. Combined with its strategic location within Europe, Prague can act as a circular beacon, helping to accelerate the broader growth of the circular economy over the continent. The knowledge and commitment of INCIEN are invaluable and we are excited to work together to develop Prague’s circular vision. ” - Ilektra Kouloumpi, Senior Project Manager, Circle Cities Programme
Building on the momentum of the kick-off workshop in Prague, this project will move on to further scope the inner material workings of the city, analysing its resource flows and pinpointing the sectors within the city that hold the greatest potential for impact in the circular transition. The third and final phase identifies tangible pilot projects to be implemented within the city which serve as a starting point for the transition towards a circular economy. An Action Agenda is created to provide an overview of the immediate actions that the municipality and its stakeholders must take, both in the short and the long term.
“The creation of a circular vision for the City of Prague will provide a foundation for the realisation of new and purposeful collaborations between government, businesses and citizens to implement circular strategies. A city that works for all of its citizens cannot be realised in isolation. We, therefore, call upon Prague’s citizens, businesses and city officials to join us in this collective journey towards the creation of an inclusive and circular Prague.”- Annerieke Douma, Director Program and Business Development, Circle Economy
Learn more about our work with cities here:
On July 8, at the Eco Forum Global Annual Conference in Guiyang, China, Circle Economy and ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability officially launch their partnership to accelerate the global transition to a circular economy through cities. In addition, the announcement also kicks off collaboration with ICLEI East Asia on developing the first regional partnership towards the practical implementation of the circular economy within East Asian and European cities.
The announcement marks the beginning of a multi-year collaboration between Circle Economy - an impact organisation committed to delivering practical and scalable solutions to transition towards a circular economy - and ICLEI, a leading global network of 1,500+ cities, representing 25% of the global urban population and committed to building a sustainable future. The partnership will leverage the expertise, experience and ambition of both organisations, with the objective to support local governments in decoupling urban economic development from resource consumption and environmental degradation.
“We all overuse our resources. “Overshot day,” the day we’ve spent more resources than we can renewably supply, arrives on the 10th of August this year. Every day after that is a day we live from the earth’s substance itself.Thus, we all have to change the way we purchase, consume, and manage our resources and waste. This is the responsibility of individuals, citizens, inhabitants, businesses, and governments, and this change must be focused through local governments.As ICLEI we are committed to supporting our Members and all other committed cities to develop and implement strategies towards sustainable procurement, avoiding waste, and creating synergies in which the output of the one becomes the input of the other - in brief, creating the "cyclical economy".ICLEI Deputy Secretary General Monika Zimmerman
Cities are now responsible for 70% of resources that are consumed globally and 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Acknowledging the huge environmental footprint of cities, both organisations recognise the crucial role of the circular economy to help close the global resource Circularity Gap, as well as create liveable and future-proof cities that also provide employment opportunities for every citizen. During the ICLEI World Congress in Montreal in June 2018, ICLEI reaffirmed its commitment towards the circular transition in cities, underlining Circular Development as a fundamental transition pathway within ICLEI’s Strategic Vision 2018-2024. Embodied in this partnership is the commitment to deep collaboration through the sharing of knowledge, resources, good practices and expertise to drive the co-development of urban circular economy initiatives. With this agreement, Circle Economy also becomes an official partner of ICLEI’s Urban Transition Alliance, which empowers cities with industrial legacies across the world to become leaders of sustainable urban development. Taken together, this partnership creates a global approach in the creation of the circular cities of the future and presents a key step in the pathway towards circular urban developmentContinued work surrounding circular cities is continuing to demonstrate the many tangible benefits a circular economy can bring to cities. Not only can circularity make huge contributions in the reductions of greenhouse gases to achieve the Paris Climate Agreement as 67% of these emissions are related to material management, but within the socio-economic sphere, circular strategies can also generate net increases in employment throughout a city to support the creation of a competitive and future-proof workforce.
“Harnessing the power of cities is vital towards a sustainable future that can thrive within the boundaries of our planet for all its citizens. This partnership between Circle Economy and ICLEI enables an actionable approach to accelerate the transition towards a circular economy in cities. The impact for cities is clear: improvements to net employment and social cohesion as well as reductions in carbon dioxide emissions - in short, answers to the big challenges cities face today” Annerieke Douma, Director Programme Development, Circle Economy
Recent decades have witnessed dramatic urban growth, particularly in East Asian cities. To support this growth in a sustainable way, these cities should strive towards circular economies that are productive and human-centered instead of extractive driven. Cities alone have the potential to reduce China’s CO2 emissions by 30%, which is a practical and realistic answer to environmental degradation and will provide solutions for job creation. Today’s announcement also marks the beginning of a close collaboration between Circle Economy and ICLEI East Asia with the goal to facilitate the practical implementation and measurement of circular economy strategies within the member cities of ICLEI East Asia. These innovative methodologies, developed by Circle Economy, have been applied in cities throughout Europe, and ICLEI East Asia will utilize their local expertise, and that of their member cities, to jointly apply these practices into regional action and create feedback loops to further improve the approaches.
Read more about our cities work:
[cta link="https://www.circle-economy.com/tool/cities/#.W0MbNtgzZE4"]Circle Cities[/cta]For questions and press inquiries please contact: Circle Economy: melanie@circle-economy.com
ICLEI: dana.vigran@iclei.org
Blockchain is often touted as the key to improving trust and transparency across industries and moving towards more equitable and collaborative systems. But could it also be the key to a circular economy?To explore the potential for blockchain to support and accelerate circular supply chains, Circle Economy and Circle Lab hosted a series of Twitter chats on June 12, 13, and 14, where they invited people around the world to join the discussion online, share their insights, and explore what problems currently hindering circular supply chains the technology could help solve.Insights from our conversation below:
First things first: what is blockchain, and what problems is it really trying to solve? Blockchain is essentially a ledger or a spreadsheet that is duplicated thousands of times across a network of computers (or “nodes”) and is designed to be regularly updated and continually reconciled. It’s the technology powering Bitcoin, but its applications go beyond cryptocurrency:
A6 My favourite one is @bext360 - really cool application of blockchain for to make the coffee supply more fair and transparent #circlechat
— Shyaam Ramkumar (@shyaamramkumar) 12 June 2018
A6 Another interesting case is @CryptoKitties: “collectible, breedable, adorable” digital cats, and one of the most popular use cases for #blockchain outside of #crypto! Do you know of other examples? #CircleChat
— Circle Lab (@thisiscirclelab) 12 June 2018
What really makes blockchain unique is its decentralisation, and as such, using the technology really only makes sense in situations where no alternative, centralised solution can do the trick:
Any problem that can be solved with a central database. E.g. storing data for yourself, large volumes of data or even any system where you can simply trust a central party. #circlechat
— Circularise (@circularise) 12 June 2018
Thanks! Not saying it’s impossible, only that the benefit of using the tech and decentralizing trust needs to be substantial to justify its impact
— Daniel Hires (@projecthires) 11 June 2018
From a lack of proofs of concept and economic incentives to a regulatory environment that still favours linear business practices, we’re in no shortage of barriers to circular supply chains. Most relevant here, however, is the current inability of supply chain actors to track the provenance of materials, components, and products throughout the chain so that anyone along the way can assert their circularity – from the moment they were first extracted or created, all the way through their (many) life cycles.
A3 Supply chains have become so complex that it is difficult to have an understanding of the types of materials in products, or where it is sourced from #circlechat
— Shyaam Ramkumar (@shyaamramkumar) 13 June 2018
Plus who made it, how and where. As we go down the tiers, the visibility and traceability diminishes. #circlechat https://t.co/hGPEpn5Ed3
— Shijo Thomas (@shijothom) 13 June 2018
A3. #circlechat
It is not so much related to transparency and trust, but more related to opaque trace-ability and visibility. How certain can I be of the materials used in a product and the origins of those materials? How scalable is achieving visibility?— Shijo Thomas (@shijothom) 13 June 2018
By translating complex chains of custodies into distributed, immutable, digital trails, blockchain could enable manufacturers, recyclers, all the way to consumers to confidently assert the circularity of their products:
#Blockchain may actually help to share dismantlement & BOM information at end of life content across multiple owners, if may help to share information on circular assets - from cars to industrial machines or spares.#circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
A6 #circlechat1. If the solution can capture all circular transactions from manufacture to re-manufacture.2. Maintains traceability of materials and processes.3. And the above is verifiable and scalable.
— Shijo Thomas (@shijothom) 13 June 2018
#Blockchain plays it advantage where multiple parties are involved. Supply chain work more efficiently if you can share information between parties (and do not wait for paper trail) .#circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
And applications already exist! Bext360, for example, uses a combination of new technologies, including blockchain, to monitor coffee beans and provide fair compensation to farmers, and A Transparent Company also uses blockchain to improve transparency in the fashion industry!But it’s not all that easy.
Blockchain is often cited as a particularly effective solution to situations where there is fraud or lack of trust in a system – but is that really the case?
Blockchain's is relevant in scenario with multiple parties that do not trust each other. Just thinking of scrap recycling where you need to proof whether the material is stolen or not.#circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
The notion that blockchain can guarantee all data authenticity and cut out the need for trust entirely quickly falls apart when data entered in the blockchain is wrong or tampered with in the first place. This is how someone managed to convince the technology they were the original artist behind the Mona Lisa, for example:https://twitter.com/projecthires/status/1007305539670429698Humorous as it may be, this example sheds light on the serious implications of assuming data on the blockchain is always authentic – from fraudulent information on data of origin for different materials to potentially much more harmful implications on e.g. child labor or fair working conditions:
100%! In its most low-tech version, it could simply be a bribery to the person who certifies e.g. that a fisher was fishing in a certain area or with certain "sustainable" methods..
— Daniel Hires (@projecthires) 14 June 2018
A1 - If it can guarantee that all supply chain stakeholders provide accurate, uniform and verifiable data, then #blockchain is suitable. Else, it would be another system with garbage in and garbage out.— Shijo Thomas (@shijothom) 14 June 2018
If blockchain cannot guarantee data authenticity in a system with inherent trust gaps, what can? Could pairing the technology with additional processes and on-the-ground, independent certification help ensure the validity of the information?
A4 #blockchain is a silver bullet in many people's minds and will automatically enable authenticity, but the data that you put into the blockchain needs to be authentic in the first place and a community to verify this #circlelchat
— Shyaam Ramkumar (@shyaamramkumar) 12 June 2018
A2: Transactions are unalterable. That's great. Now you need to create the link between a physical object and the digital representation - anything from identifying characteristics, to QR codes etc. . #circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
It seems like third party audits, tamper-proof technology linking physical objects to their digital identity, and trustworthy partners still have useful purposes to serve in a blockchain-based system – especially where sensitive and hard-to-measure information is involved.
Well a good example, I think this was with diamonds, to use measurable characteristics of an object that uniquely identify it. This ID can then be linked to movements.#circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
That's one of the issues with certifying working conditions for fair clothing. You need to have a independent certifier on the ground that you trust, I believe. #circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
Exactly. Third party audits. But even that can be tricky in countries with high corruption. #circlechat
— Agnes Krown (@AgnesKrown) 14 June 2018
If trust still has a role to play in a blockchain world, then so should education, as a change in mindset will be key in getting stakeholders to work together, rather than against each other.
Tech are there, or can be built. But in a larger system, awareness and changing perception is a harder nut to crack. Without that, you can't force anyone to invest, and hence no tech can help
— Anti-National Indian (@IndianChutney) 13 June 2018
Since the industrial revolution, supply chains have mostly followed a competitive model of doing business, limiting their opportunities to find, create, and leverage synergies.
A3 Sadly, supply chains can be very conservative in the way they deal with relationships and trusted parties, which can hinder collaboration towards #circular #supplychains #circlechat
— Shyaam Ramkumar (@shyaamramkumar) 13 June 2018
A reluctance to share information, deeply rooted in the global race to low costs, coupled with information asymmetry that continues to benefit many actors in the supply chain – regardless of efforts being unnecessarily duplicated – all contribute to a competitive and counterproductive mindset.
Complete transparency is a risk. e.g. as a trader you can be willing to share product features (conflict mineral free), but you do not want to share the identity of the mine and be cut out next time. #circlechat
— Circularise (@circularise) 13 June 2018
It is still easier to just do your own thing and make money. Also, a lot of money is made by keeping information secret. Information = value in supply chains. #circlechat
— Circularise (@circularise) 13 June 2018
A4 #circlechatI think the monopolization is a result of limited knowledge in the industry on where to compete and where to collaborate. In supply chains, there can be a thin line between the two. The result is a duplication of efforts for all parties.
— Shijo Thomas (@shijothom) 13 June 2018
To nudge supply chain actors further towards collaboration, initiatives like Circularise are leveraging blockchain, zero knowledge, and smart questioning to enable privacy and confidentiality among those that want to remain anonymous, don’t necessarily trust each other, but are still committed to greater transparency and collaboration within their supply chains.
A5: At second thought: #blockchain may actually help to expore just the data you need to share - between partners or competitors that do not trust. Thus, #blockchain could help to deal with confidentiality.#circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
Consortium blockchains are another alternative for those supply chain participants that already trust each other but are not willing to share their data in a public forum. Semi-private and partially decentralised, consortium blockchains are controlled by a number of pre-selected nodes and deliver a number of advantages at the intersection between centralised systems and fully public blockchains.
A5: I believe it helps if you operate not an open, but a consortium #blockchain. This would be between business partners that normally have a certain level of trust. #circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
Collaboration and transperency for sure. I may prefer to expose information on current transports or transactions rather in a protected environment of customer supplier and service provider - and not with everyone.#circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
Designed properly, a blockchain could enable its participants to collaborate without compromising on key competitive advantages or on confidentiality and privacy issues, and would, in and of itself, present advantageous gains not to warrant additional incentives for participants.
There should be an agreement on standardized information to be shared. It should also consider safety of all supply chain participants, because we're dealing with multicultural industries. #circlechat
— Agnes Krown (@AgnesKrown) 14 June 2018
A6: My POV: a good #blockchain scenario has inherent value through cost savings or efficiency. You would not even need incentives.If you look at it from an end-consumer side: if I can trust a product is genuine and "purposeful", I might pay a premium.#circlechat
— Stefan Weisenberger (@belobregovic) 14 June 2018
Finally, it is worth noting that because blockchain is, to some extent, a solution looking for the right problem to solve, it’s just as important to recognise when not to use the technology. Taking a problem-first approach and asking the right questions is often crucial in identifying what an appropriate solution should, or shouldn’t look like. For example:
#CircleChat @thisiscirclelabA2 ; Honestly, i don't think this is a valid question. Is lack of trust and transparency a technology problem? Would implementing Blockchain, magically increase trust and transparency?
— Shijo Thomas (@shijothom) 14 June 2018
I don't get why this needs to be on a blockchain though? Isn't the biggest trust issue that the temperature measurement is not being tampered with (rather than the data collector being untrustworthy)?
— Daniel Hires (@projecthires) 14 June 2018
Why do we need Blockchain for tracking and monitoring? This is already being done by so many logistics systems.
— Shijo Thomas (@shijothom) 14 June 2018
This is a good point, many applications seem to plug #blockchain technology because of the hype rather than it having an actual use case #circlechat
— Shyaam Ramkumar (@shyaamramkumar) 12 June 2018
As tempting as delving into the world of blockchain is, we should be cautious not to try and fit square pegs into round holes.
Is the technology appropriate for circular applications, as it currently stands today?
#Blockchaintechnology is in its infancy & lots of teams around the world are working on fixing the most fundamental flaws in the technology. Energy consumption in #blockchain is an issue today, but does that mean that we should wait with #circulareconomy applications? #circlechat
— Circularise (@circularise) 12 June 2018
Is the energy use of blockchains offset by the environmental positive impact they can make by improving circular economy applications? Is there any research or scientific evidence on this? #circlechat
— Nosy Noah (@nosy_noah) 12 June 2018
To drive the adoption of and improve the technology, we definitely need more organisations and individuals experimenting with blockchain, and there is great potential for the technology to address key circularity barriers. But ultimately, the circular economy calls for systemic change, and technology is but one of the many drivers we need along the way.
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